Method of manufacturing nonmetallic gear wheels and the like



D THE LIKE Oct. 21, 1930. e. o. SMALL METHOD OF MANUFACTURING NONMETALLIC GEAR WHEELS AN Filed April 18, 1928 Two 5 erBr'ea/rer I a Picker- Heated Rolls Inventor: 'Gmu 0. small, b3

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Patented Oct. 21, 1930 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE GUY O. SMALL, OF LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOB TO GENERAL ELEGDRIO COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK METHOD OF MANUFACTURING NONMETALLIC GEAR WHEELS AND THE LIKE Application flled April 18, 1928. Serial No. 270,995.

The present invention relates to non-metallic gear wheels or-the like, of the typecomprising spinnable textile fibers held under high compression between metal end plates, and especially to such gear wheels or the like formed from cotton fibers and wherein the gear wheel or the like is formed by cutting disks from sheets of cotton material, stacking the disks one on another between in metal end plates and then compressing the stack and fastening the end plates together with studs or other suitable means. The invention relates especially to the manufacture of such gear wheels from unwoven cotton fibers although it is not limited thereto necessarily. I In manufacturing gear wheels or the like from loose cotton fibers, it 'is desirable in the first instance to consolidate layers of the I fibers into sheets which are sufliciently stiff and board-like to enable them to be handled readily and to have blanks cut from them. Heretofore, as'far as I am aware, this has been accomplished by first immersing cot- 2 ton batting or similar unwoven sheet cotton in a solution of water and starch and after wards pressing and drying the. material, there being thus obtained board-like sheets sulficiently stiff to be handled and to have out therefrom readily disks for forming the ear wheels or the like. This method, w ile satisfactory, has the disadvantage thatit adds to the cotton fibers a certain amount of starch which, while not harmful, is not essential to the finished product and that it requires careful drying to remove all the Water from the cotton fibers, it being the practice to subject the structure after it has been finally compressed between the end 40 plates to a vacuum treatment to remove the last trace of water and then to admit oil to the vacuum chamber in which the treatment is taking place so as to fill the interstices in the compressed cotton with oil which serves as a lubricant and also as a means to prevent the structure afterwards from absorbing moisture. Also, this method of treating the cotton batting with a starch solution has the disadvantage that it renders the waste left from cutting disks from the sheets unfit to be re-worked and again .used in the process. And in addition to the foregoing, this former method has the disadvantage that it comprises a number of steps and requires the use of a relatively expensive form of cotton fibers, i. e. cotton batting, which means that the method is relatively expenslve.

The object of my invention is to provide an improved method of manufacturing gear Wheels, gear wheel blanks or the like from loose cotton fibers which is siinpler than methods heretofore in use, and whereby I am enabled to reduce materially the, cost of manufacture and at the same time increasev the strength of the gear wheel.

For a consideration of what I believe to'be novel and my invention, attention is directed to the accompanying description and the claims appended thereto.

According to my invention, I take spinnable textile material which may be in the form of loose, unwoven cotton such as a poker lap or cotton batting, for example, or which may be in the form of woven material and treat it with a small amount of lubricating oil,- very light machine oil being satisfactory, and following this, I then press the oil-treated material between heated rolls or in a suitably heated press. I have found that by this means I am enabled to provide a board-like sheet of cotton material which is sufiiciently stiff to be handled readily and from which disks can be cut andutilized in a known way for the manufacture of gearv wheels, gear wheel blanks or the like.

The material is treated with just suflicient oil that during the final consolidation of the structure, little if an oilwill be squeezed out. At the same time, owever, sufficient oil is used so that if the final structure were subjected to an oil solution in a vacuum, no more oil would be taken up by the fibers of the material. The oil may be applied to the material in any suitable manner, the only essential being that it be distributed fairly uniformly over the material. In compressing the oil-treated material in the case of cotton material, a pressure of the order of 1000 lbs. per sq. in. is satisfactory, the material being at the same time subjected to a temperature of the order of 325 Broadly considered, my improved method comprises first treating the material such as loose cotton fibers with a suitable amount oi oil; then compressing the oil-treated material to form board-like sheets which are sutticiently stilt to be handled readily; and finally, in a manner already known, cutting disks from the sheets, stacking the disks between metal end plates, compressing the stack under high pressure, and fastening the end plates together by means of studs or other fastening means. My invention com rises also an improved method whereby T am enabled to utilize advantageously baled cotton which can be purchased at relatively low cost as compared with cotton batting, for example.

In the drawing, I have illustrated apparatus by which my invention may be carried out with advantage, the apparatus enabling me to utilize baled cotton, a form in which the cotton can be purchased at relatively low cost. In the drawing, Figs. 1 and 2 are diagrammatic views illustrating in a general way apparatus which may be utilized in carrying out my invention; Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a sheet of material as it comes from the ap paratus illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2; 1- shows the manner in which the material is stacked to form a gear wheel blank, and Fig. 5 shows a completed gear wheel blank.

Referring to the drawing, 1, 6 indicates diagrammatically a two beater breaker and picker. This may be. oi any desired type, such machines being known in connection with the working'of textile materials such as raw cotton. It comprises generally a hopper in which a bale of cotton comber waste or card strips may be placed and mechanism which serves to separate the cotton fibers, clean them and spread them out into a relatively thin sheet. The sheet of cotton fibers leaving the two beater breaker and picker 6 is indicated at 7. It passes between sets of rollers 8 and 9, and is finally wound into a roll by the rollers 10 as is indicated at 11. Prior to being formed into roll 11, the sheet of cotton fibers is sprayed with a small amount of lubricating oil such, for example, as a very light machine oil. This oil may be sprayed on in any suitable manner. in the present instance it is shown as being sprayed by means of a revolving brush 12 which engages the surface of a revolving metal cylinder 13 the lower portion of which dips into a receptacle 14 containing the lubricating oil. A certain amount of oil is carried up on the surface of the metal cylinder and is brushed oil by the revolving brush 12 and deposited on the cotton sheet. The spray of oil is indicated at 15. A number of rolls 11 of suitable size may be formed, each roll being wound on an arbor 16.

Referring now to Fig. 2, a number of the rolls 11 of oil treated fibers are placed in a framework comprising pairs of vertical arms the belt 19 travels the rolls 11 are unrolled.

forming thereby a relatively thick sheet of loose cotton fibers, as is indicated at 21. This sheet is fed through pairs of heated pressure rolls 22 which serve to heat and compress t. I have found that by this treatment there is obtained a board-like sheet of cotton fibers 19 is an endless belt which istill which is sufiiciently stiff to be handled readily and td have blanks cut from it. 23 indicates a suitable cutting tool which may be utilized for cutting the board-like sheets into lengths of convenient size.

Fig. 3 indicates at 24 one of the sheets which has been cut off by the tool 23. From the sheet 2& discs of suitable size, as is indicated at 25 in Fig. 4, may be out. These discs are stacked one on top of another between suitable metal end plates after which the entire structure is consolidated in a'suitable hydraulic press and fastened in compressed condition to form a gear-wheel blank or the like.

big. 5 indicates a completed gear-wheel, 26 indicating the layers of cotton fiber, 27 the metal end plates, 28 studs which serve to hold the structure assembled, and 29 teeth which have been cut in the blank.

By my invention T have materially simplified the method of manufacturing nonmetallic gear-wheels of this type over methods heretofore used; at the same time l have found by extensive tests that the finished.

product in the case of gear-wheels, is stronger and more durable than similar gear-wheels made by previous known methods. By my method I am enabled to utilize initially baled cotton or various wastes from cotton mills which represents the lowest initial cost for raw material. This constitutes one saving in cost accomplished by my invention. Another saving in cost results from the fact that the method is simple to carry out, effecting a decrease in both the labor and factory equipment required. Tn addition to the foregoing by my improved method T effect an additional saving in that the scrap material left from cutting the discs from the board-like sheets can be re-worked in the two beater picker whereby it results that all waste of material is eliminated.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. The method of forming sheets of spinnable textile material from which pieces for Mid use in the manufacture of gear wheels or the like may be cut, which comprises treating the textile material with lubricating oil, and then compressing it to form sheets.

2. The method of forming sheets of unwoven textile material from which pieces for a use in the manufacture of gear wheels or the like may be ,cut, which comprises treating layers of textile fibers as they come froma picker with lubricating oil, placing the treated layers one on another, and then compressing them to form sheets.

3. The method of forming sheets of spinnable textile material from which pieces for use in the manufacture of gear wheels or the like may be out, which comprises treating the textile material withlubricating oil and then consolidating sheets of the material by the application of pressure and heat to form sheets. I

4. The method of forming sheets of spinnable textile material from which pieces for making gear wheels or the like may be cut, which comprises treating the textile material with lubricating oil and then passing it be-. tween rolls-t0 compress it to form sheets.

5. The method of forming sheets of unwoven textile material from which pieces for use in the manufacture of gear wheels or the like may be out, which comprises treating the unwoven' textile material with lubricating oil and then compressin it to form sheets.

In witness whereof, have hereunto set my hand this thirteenth (alwf April, 1928.

O SMALL. 

